Preventing Shingles in RA Patients

The live varicella-zoster vaccine can effectively prevent shingles in rheumatoid arthritis patients starting treatment with the drug tofacitinib, according to results of 2 recently-published studies in Arthritis & Rheumatology. Shingles causes a painful rash that may appear as a stripe of blisters on the trunk of the body. Pain can persist even after the rash is gone (this is called postherpetic neuralgia). Treatments include pain relief and antiviral medications such as acyclovir or valacyclovir. A chickenpox vaccine in childhood or a shingles vaccine as an adult can minimize the risk of developing shingles. Patients who received the shingles vaccine several weeks prior…
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Integrating Stem Cells into Functional Neural Networks

The inherent potential of stem cells to engender any cellular form and function drives the field of regenerative medicine. In recent years, stem cell research has witnessed prolific growth particularly in disease-modeling, drug discovery and patient-specific cell therapy. A major challenge in stem cell-mediated therapy is to understand and promote integration of transplanted stem cells into the host tissue. Fundamental to success of such therapies is development of robust methods to engraft stem cells and monitor their integration into the host network. Central to this theme, David Forsberg, Eric Herlenius and co-workers at Karolinska Institute (Stockholm) and Mahidol University (Bangkok) have recently published…
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Pain Points

Neurobiologist Clifford Woolf discusses the importance of pain points and the surprising twists of his latest research Pain—feared, misunderstood and even poeticized in works of art and literature—has long captivated the scientific imagination of Clifford Woolf since his days as a medical student in South Africa. Woolf, a Harvard Medical School professor of neurobiology and neurology at Boston Children’s Hospital, has been on a quest to understand the basic mechanisms of pain and to help spark the development of more effective therapies to alleviate pain points, especially ones that don’t have the abuse potential of opioids. Woolf is the senior author of…
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Pain Receptors Migrating may cause Chronic Pain

A study led by Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) has shown that chronic pain may occur when pain receptors migrate from the nerve cell's surface to the cell's inner chambers, out of the reach of current pain medications. The discovery, in rodents, may lead to the development of a new class of medications for chronic pain that is more potent and less prone to side effects than currently available pain treatments. The study was published online today in the journal Science Translational Medicine. An estimated 20 percent of people have chronic pain at some point. Currently available therapies for chronic…
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Post-Stroke Shoulder Pain Reduced with Peripheral Nerve Stimulator

Clinical results reported at the 2017 North American Neuromodulation Society meeting show that peripheral nerve stimulation can help stroke patients. And that peripheral nerve stimulation provides meaningful relief for people suffering from post-stroke shoulder pain (PSSP). Post stroke shoulder pain is experienced by anywhere between 30 and 70 percent of stroke sufferers. Dr. Porter McRoberts is a trained Physiatrist and Interventional Spine and Pain Management Specialist in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He shared data indicating that peripheral nerve stimulation is a promising treatment for post-stroke shoulder pain (PSSP) patients. When compared to the alternative options for pain management, it proved helpful.…
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Advancing Pain Management Medicine: Human Studies

Nearly every advance in modern medicine, from diagnosis to treatment, has benefited from animal studies. Basic research has made vital contributions to all aspects of medical care, including our understanding of pain pathophysiology. However, the applicability of these findings to humans remains limited. “Translation from animal to human is hindered by many obstacles, in particular with the subject of pain, where the human organism and mind interact in quite a unique way,” Claudia Sommer, MD, a professor of neurology at the University of Würzburg in Germany, told Clinical Pain Advisor. Even so, valuable insights have been gained by the direct…
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Merkel Cells in the Fingertips

That a finger can distinguish the texture of satin from suede is an exquisite sensory discrimination. Largely relying on small sensory organs in the fingertips called Merkel discs containing Merkel Cells. Jianguo Gu, Ph.D., of the University of Alabama at Birmingham, has now unraveled how the sensory information is processed in the Merkel discs. As well as further conveyed to the ending of a sensory nerve, the start of its journey to the brain. Such molecular understanding about the sensory information transmission between Merkel cells and nerve endings could be radical. And may lay the foundation to treat patients' intense…
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Treating Visceral Pain

Visceral pain relates to pain in the organs of the body. So it could be the chest, or more likely, the abdomen or the pelvis. It is somewhat unlike other pain syndromes. In a sense that visceral pain activates the autonomic nervous system, specifically the parasympathetic nervous system, the sympathetic nervous system, or both. Which is why a lot of patients who have visceral pain also have associated nausea, vomiting and sweating.  More women than men suffer from visceral pain. More specifically from chronic pelvic pain; pain that can come from the bladder, the uterus, the fallopian tubes, the ovaries.…
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Emotional Expression Benefits Chronic Pain

A therapeutic intervention involving confronting and expressing emotional and traumatic experiences shows greater improvement in fibromyalgia pain. When compared with conventional cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), randomized trial results show. It was also linked to significant pain reductions when offered as a one-time intervention in the primary care setting, researchers report. "Current evidence-based psychological interventions for fibromyalgia, such as CBT, are relatively weak. We believe, because they do not help patients disclose, target, and resolve their conflicted emotional experiences," senior author Mark Lumley, PhD, professor of psychology at Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan, told Medscape Medical News. "We have demonstrated, however, that…
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Neuroinflammation: How it causes Chronic Pain

What is neuroinflammation and why does it cause severe burning pain even when there seems to be no injury? Let me explain it as simply as I can. Say you sprain your ankle. Your ankle then hurts, swells, discolors, and the pain limits use. The swelling occurs because of “healing” chemicals that move into the affected area and work to repair any damage. In a typical person, this process is successful and the healing chemicals trigger another set of chemicals to take the healing chemicals away. The swelling and discoloration go away and the person doesn’t have any additional issues…
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